Videos can be a very fun and interactive way for students to learn. Almost all of our students spend a lot of time watching Television or movies without gaining much out of what they watch. The classroom can be a place where students learn how to use videos to benefit them educationally. There are many activities that can stem from a video which can help an English Language Learner practice their new language. Many vocabulary terms can come fro videos, which can help students build up their vocabulary. Many literacy activities can also come from video. Videos can be used as a great tool to ask higher order thinking questions as well. Overall, there are many great ways that teachers can use videos in the classroom which will help the teacher with teaching their content, as well as helping English Language Learners practice their language.
Activity 1: Video Quiz
I got the idea for this activity at ESLvideo.com. I was not a huge fan of any of the videos or quizzes that were presented by the website, but I believed that this activity can be adapted to work well in any classroom at any grade level. It is essential for the teacher to find a relevant video for the subject that they are studying, as well as a video that the students can relate to. That was my biggest criticism of the videos on the website, I just do not believe that students would want to watch them and they would not be engaged throughout the quiz. In this activity, a teacher can play a three to five minute video, and than provide the students with a few questions from that video. A teacher can have English Language Learners practice their vocabulary skills as well as practice their comprehension of the English language. The teacher can also ask a higher order thinking question that can stem from the video. The video that the teacher uses must be appropriate for the age of the student. For example in a high school classroom I can play a music video by Lupe Fiasco titled "The Show Goes On." I would use the version that does not swear. There are many different vocabulary words that can be studied from this video. The teacher can also ask the students about the content that was presented by this music video. A good amount of higher order thinking skills can also be asked. This video also raises a good message and you can question the students about this message.
Activity 2: Do It Yourself Video
This activity I came up by myself. This activity can work well from grades k-3 for students who are just learning the English Language. It can also be adapted to work in the higher grades as well, but for this activity I will be focusing on younger students. The students will be paired off into groups of four. They will be given two letters and I will tell them what sound it makes. (th, ch, ph, wh ,sh) The students job will be to compose a two minute skit which will be showed to teach the rest of the class. The students will be asked to teach the other students the sound that the letter makes, as well as provide the students with some common words. The students will also be encouraged to come up with a fun song or rhyme, but this will not be required. Once the students have created their skit, I will record them performing the skit. Their skit will be shown to the rest of the class, and this is the way that we would practice the sound that we are using. The teacher will have to show an example of a skit, and also it would be helpful to model one to the students. This activity will require the teacher to help guide the groups a lot while they are coming up with the skits, but I believe that with patience this activity can be a great experience for the students to learn.
Activity 1: Video Quiz
I got the idea for this activity at ESLvideo.com. I was not a huge fan of any of the videos or quizzes that were presented by the website, but I believed that this activity can be adapted to work well in any classroom at any grade level. It is essential for the teacher to find a relevant video for the subject that they are studying, as well as a video that the students can relate to. That was my biggest criticism of the videos on the website, I just do not believe that students would want to watch them and they would not be engaged throughout the quiz. In this activity, a teacher can play a three to five minute video, and than provide the students with a few questions from that video. A teacher can have English Language Learners practice their vocabulary skills as well as practice their comprehension of the English language. The teacher can also ask a higher order thinking question that can stem from the video. The video that the teacher uses must be appropriate for the age of the student. For example in a high school classroom I can play a music video by Lupe Fiasco titled "The Show Goes On." I would use the version that does not swear. There are many different vocabulary words that can be studied from this video. The teacher can also ask the students about the content that was presented by this music video. A good amount of higher order thinking skills can also be asked. This video also raises a good message and you can question the students about this message.
Activity 2: Do It Yourself Video
This activity I came up by myself. This activity can work well from grades k-3 for students who are just learning the English Language. It can also be adapted to work in the higher grades as well, but for this activity I will be focusing on younger students. The students will be paired off into groups of four. They will be given two letters and I will tell them what sound it makes. (th, ch, ph, wh ,sh) The students job will be to compose a two minute skit which will be showed to teach the rest of the class. The students will be asked to teach the other students the sound that the letter makes, as well as provide the students with some common words. The students will also be encouraged to come up with a fun song or rhyme, but this will not be required. Once the students have created their skit, I will record them performing the skit. Their skit will be shown to the rest of the class, and this is the way that we would practice the sound that we are using. The teacher will have to show an example of a skit, and also it would be helpful to model one to the students. This activity will require the teacher to help guide the groups a lot while they are coming up with the skits, but I believe that with patience this activity can be a great experience for the students to learn.